Easter Weekend Conducive to Late-Season Skiing, Boarding

By Alex Sosnowski, Expert Senior Meteorologist

March 29,2013; 4:29PM,EDT

It is way too cold to swim, bike trails may be too muddy or bike lanes may still have a lot of winter debris. So what are you to do if you are bored?
Lingering cold weather and snow for many areas could mean one of the best Easter weekends for skiing and boarding ever, especially over the Upper Midwest and the Appalachians.

Even though temperatures are turning around to seasonable levels and some rain is in the offing, many resorts are boasting a bumper base of snow (several feet in some cases) with most trails still open.

Before you hang it up for the season, this is a perfect opportunity to utilize those season passes or take advantage of late-season skiing deals before the snow disappears.
If you don't know how to ski or snowboard and don't mind cracking a sweat and getting a little wet, spring skiing conditions offer a golden opportunity to learn or get better.

Conditions this weekend will offer a firm base with a soft, granular surface in most cases, which is more forgiving. And you won't have to be weighed down with winter weight outerwear.

Most resorts stopped making snow a while back, but Mother Nature made up for it during the second half of the winter. Some locations in the central and southern Appalachians have picked up over a foot of snow from the most recent storm near the Palm Sunday weekend. (Images and thumbnails by Photos.com)

While the weather has been much warmer in the West, the much higher elevations compensates for the warmth with plenty of snow to ski on at most resorts.